Gear Check

Test

What kind of memory cards do I use?

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Here’s a quick post on a question I get asked quite often. What kind of memory cards do I use? I exclusively use the Sandisk Extreme III memory cards. When I first got into photography I had the 2GB vesrsions of this card and I have never experienced a single failure. I think it’s safe to say that most photographers pick one type of card and unless they experience any failures, most likely stick with that type/brand for a very long time. The thing that initially attracted me to these cards was that they are rated down to -25 degrees …

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5DMKII – Quick video test

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The snow has been falling in Vancouver, and that means its time to shoot urban! I took a break from shooting stills yesterday though to film for a couple of minutes with my 5DMKII to see just what sort of video you can get with fast moving subjects and panning. I think I have a lot to learn about video if i’m to put it to good use. As usual, pointing a camera at a snowy scene provides less than stellar results from autoexposure mechanisms. Snow is typically rendered 2/3 of a stop or more underexposed as the camera exposes …

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First shoot with 5D Mark II !

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Last week a new camera arrived the day before a big shoot for a large pharmaceutical company. I’m not one for going out and shooting test cards and greyscales and all that kind of stuff. I simply like to test my gear in the situations that I normally find myself. Draw from this what you will then, it is not intended as any sort of review on this camera, there are plenty of those popping up daily on the web. This is simply a few example shots from my shoot last week, and a few initial thoughts on the camera. …

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Video accessories for the Canon 5D Mark II: Part 2 – Video tripod heads

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Following on from Part 1 where I took a look at some useful sound accessories for the 5DMKII, this week I’m going to be taking a look at video heads for your tripod. For photographers out there wishing to take advantage of the video capabilities of this camera , there is no getting around the fact that you won’t be able to use your current photographic tripod head. Normally I use a Really Right Stuff BH-40, whilst this does have a separate panning base which might be usable for panning horizontally , it would not allow any vertical panning and …

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Video accessories for the Canon 5D Mark II: Part 1 – Microphones

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When Canon launched the 5dMKII in late 2008 , the quality and look of the video it produced was lost on nobody. It changed everything, Fast forward now to 2010 and I am updating my original posting on microphones for the 5dmkII because it’s popularity has gone from strength to strength. The final episode of the worlds most watched TV show(in 2010), House, was just shot entirely using the Canon 5dMKII. And what is even crazier about the whole story, is that Canon had seemingly no idea of the potential of this camera when they released it. They never intended …

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A new lens for my kit, Canon 300mm f4L IS

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Last winter as my shooting evolved to encompass a lot more backcountry shooting, I increasingly found myself shooting at long end of my 70-200mm F2.8 L IS. Half way through the season i purchased a Canon 1.4x Teleconverter to use with it , creating a 280mm F4. Usable in terms of image quality but not great, I was left a little disappointed unless the lens was stopped down to f8 and that’s a pretty tall order when you are shooting action requiring at least 1/1000 shutter speed. This summer then i decided to pick up something that was naively a …

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Hoodman Hoodloupe 3.0 – A useful piece if kit!

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Anyone that has ever used a DSLR outside in bright sunshine knows that it can sometimes be tough to see the LCD on the back of the camera. Yes you can get a rough idea whats going on but when you are trying to check critical focusing or exposure with the histogram it can be tricky and I normally resort to unzipping my jacket and trying to view it inside, or removing my jacket and throwing it over my head if its a bright day. When you have miles of snow surrounding you on all sides, each flake seemingly reflecting …

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Really Right Stuff (RRS) BH-40 Ballhead mini review

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Over the last couple of years I have experimented with with several different ballheads and failed to find what I was looking for. I don’t use a ballhead very often for my work but when i do need one, i need one that is going to be reliable in fairly hostile environments. Last year I was let down by ballheads from other brands in key situations so I finally decided to bite the bullet and pick up an RRS BH-40. At almost $400 its relatively expensive but hopefully this will be the last ballhead I have to buy for many …

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